


The Life and Death of Timothy Stoker

by unfinaus



Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canon-Typical Violence, Canonical Character Death, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/F, F/M, Gaslighting, Grief/Mourning, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, No beta we die like archival assistants, Reader Insert, Self-Indulgent, Self-Insert, She/Her pronouns for the Reader, TMA, Tim deserved better, the magnus archives - Freeform, vent - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:33:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 17,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26421184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unfinaus/pseuds/unfinaus
Summary: In an attempt to deal with her grief, Y/N records a statement regarding her life with Tim.
Relationships: Elias Bouchard | Jonah Magnus/Original Character(s), Georgie Barker/Melanie King, Implied Elias Bouchard/Reader, Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Mentioned Georgie Barker/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Subtle Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist/Reader, Tim Stoker/Original Female Character, Tim Stoker/Reader, Tim Stoker/Reader Insert, Tim Stoker/You
Comments: 15
Kudos: 39





	1. Starting Somewhere

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Magnus Archives](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/526115) by Jonathan Sims. 



>Click<

Soft breaths could be heard, though they were shaking. There was a palpable hesitation and for a few moments, nothing was said. It wasn’t the first time she had had to record a statement but this one was different. This time it was her statement and it was like forcing out the words, allowing them to be recorded made everything so much more real. Clearing her tight throat, she began.

“Statement of Y/N L/N, archival assistant at the Magnus Institute. Taken direct from subject on the 11th of August, 2017. Regarding...R-regarding the life and d-No, I can’t do this.” She interrupted herself with a whimper, leaning back in her seat. Had this room always felt so cold? So empty? If it had then why did it feel like the air was closing in around her at the same time? Is that what grief was supposed to feel like? Or was it some unknown power using her vulnerable state to play with her mind yet again? Nowhere was safe from them, she knew that. Not even the institute. Y/N knew better than that though. As much as she craved for her emotional turmoil to be something she could blame on an outside power, something she could fight off, she knew better. Her hands were fidgeting with the sleeves of her shirt, long sleeves despite the summer weather. 

“God, this would be easier if you were here Jon. If you could just- make me say it.” Sometimes Y/N was resentful of the fact Jon was the only one who felt better after reading a statement, or making one himself like he was giving some sort of offering to appease the entity which they were now all bound to thanks to Elias. Maybe then she would actually be able to do this without sobbing. Soft, wheezing cries, which were occasionally broken up with a weak attempt to pull herself together. Maybe Martin was right, maybe it was too soon. After all, they had only found him - what was left of him - less than a week ago. Hot tears coursed down her face, again. How many times had she cried today? “Fuck.” 

She wiped away the salty sorrow with her already tear stained sleeves and smacked her cheeks a few times, willing herself to take in deep breathes. She had to do this. For him. He would probably hate that you are doing this. Y/N laughed at her own thought, though it came out thick with bitterness. “Ok, ok. You can do this.” Again, she cleared her throat. “ Statement of Y/N L/N. Archival assistant at the Magnus Institute, London. Statement taken direct from subject on the 11th of August, 2017. Regarding the life and d-death of Tim. Timothy Stoker, former archival assistant at the Magnus Institute.” 

“I’m giving this statement- or at least trying to- because I think it will help. Maybe it will help me grieve, maybe it will help Jon understand why Tim did what he did. I-If he wakes up. God, I hope you wake up, Jon.”

Pause. 

“I know you two have had your differences, and that you didn’t talk much in the last year but I just want you to know he never hated you, Jon. Not really. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s start from the beginning. Timothy Stoker and I met when we were both already working here at the Institute, around 4 years ago. He had just started working here in 2013, I had already been here for a little while. As you know, I wasn’t a part of the archive. I was Elias’s assistant at the time, had been since 2011. Maybe I should have noticed there was something… strange about him back then. Maybe if I had- No, never mind. No use in thinking about that right now. He’s gone. Martin’s plan worked and Elias is in jail, though I’m sure he is keeping a watchful eye on all of us.”

A shudder crept up her spine but she chose to ignore it. Fuck Elias Bouchard. 

“ Anyway, Tim and I met very accidentally. He was a researcher so we had no real reason to bump into each other, but we did. It wasn’t here though. It was at a coffee shop nearby. You see Jon, I took my assistant job very seriously back then and liked to show up to work early, if not on time, so I would go to the little coffee shop nearby at around 8:30am. That was earlier than most of the shifts here start so I never really ran into anyone from work. Unluckily for poor Tim, who had decided to stop by my little coffee shop hours before his shift started. I say unluckily, because I literally ran into him. Which would have been fine if he hadn’t been holding a cup of hot coffee which I was unfortunate enough to have spilled all over my blouse. It was my fault, it really was but Tim felt awful. He apologized over and over again, setting down the now forgotten coffee and frantically handing me tissues to try and clean up the mess. I didn’t know what to say. Here was this handsome stranger who I had just run into and he was apologizing to me? It’s safe to say I was already swooning.” 

She chuckled at herself.

“When I finally got my wits about me I tried to reassure him that it was alright, that I had a change of clothes at the place I worked nearby. He still felt terrible and offered me his jacket to cover myself as I went. You know Tim, when he sets his mind to something, he won’t take no for an answer and there was no way he was going to let me leave without it. So I took it, still feeling guilty and fussing over how I would get it back to him. He said not to worry about it and that he would be happy to walk me to work since he was early himself. I accepted. I’m not sure why. Looking back, it was stupid of me to agree to this stranger’s request. But back then, things were different. We were different. Coffee’s left behind, we walked together. We chatted casually, comfortably. I learned his name was Tim and I introduced myself to him in kind and we talked. About anything and everything that I can’t even remember now. Pointless, meaningless things. Do you remember when the last time we have talked about something trivial was, Jon? I can’t.”

“We had almost reached the Institute by the time he realized that I was leading him to the place he also happened to work. He asked me, amusement lingering in his tone, if I was Y/N L/N. I just blinked up at him, surprised before nodding. I told him that yes, I was and asked how he knew that. By now we were in front of the Institute and he smiled. “Sorry, let me reintroduce myself. I’m Timothy Stoker, researcher for the Magnus Institute.” I was probably a little too happy too quickly to find out we were actually coworkers. It was like a moment out of one of those terrible American Hallmark films. I think we laughed about how silly we both were for not realizing and he explained that he had recognized my name from where I signed off several of Elias’s memos. As we walked inside, he said to “-definitely not worry about the jacket since we’ll be in the same building anyway. You can return it any time.” Part of me wondered, or maybe hoped, that he was refusing to take the jacket so we would have an excuse to see each other again. Not that we ended up needing it though.”

“We-“ Knocking broke her out of trance and she looked up. “Yes?” Martin opened the door, stepping inside. 

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. A-Are you recording something?” She glanced down at the recorder, hesitating before nodding. 

“Yeah I am. But I can come back to it. Did you need me for something?”

“I can come back another time-“

“Martin it’s fine, I promise. Here, I’ll even stop recording.”

>Click<


	2. Coffee and Jackets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/N continues her statement for a comatose John.

>Click<

“Sorry about that Jon, Martin needed my help with-“ Y/N paused for a moment. This was strange. She knew this was strange. She was talking to this thing, a machine like it was Jon. To be fair, sometimes it did feel like him. It gave off the same— energy, almost. “-you, actually. Something about Mr.Lukas wanting me to check on your condition.” Peter Lukas. His whole family seemed to be an avatar of The Isolation, so maybe it made sense that she hadn’t met him yet. Not in person anyway. The only one who had was Martin - which again- made sense. “You seem to be doing fine, from what I can tell. Physically, at least. It’s like you’re in a deep sleep and I really wish I could say you looked peaceful. Maybe when you wake up, you’ll tell me what you dreamt about.” 

She was getting sidetracked, the old Jon may have been annoyed by her disorganization but something told her that he would be a bit more lenient with this particular statement. Her mouth felt dry. She swallowed. “Statement continues.”

“We eventually parted ways, albeit hesitantly. I went up to Elias’s office to get my clothes. I wasn’t surprised to find him already there. Even back then it seemed like Elias was always here. When he saw the state of me he seemed concerned enough, asking what had happened. Obviously he already knew but back then, how could I have known that? Now, I can’t help but wonder if he was actually concerned about me or if he was worried about me interfering with Tim earlier than he wanted.” 

If Jon could have seen her, her eyes would have looked far away as her words trailed off. No one could blame her. Whenever she spoke about working for Elias, it was hard not to question everything he ever did in her presence. She had spent the past year too distracted to really linger on the fact that she had been working for an evil, telepathic man but now that he was gone...it was a lot easier to lose herself in that doubt. 

“Anyway, I changed and the rest of the day was rather uneventful. In fact I almost completely forgot about this whole interaction with the amount of busy work Elias had given me. I didn’t even notice how late it was until Elias asked if I still had enough time to catch the tube. I finished up my work as quickly as I could and threw on the jacket in my panic. I won’t lie and say I remembered that it wasn’t my jacket as I ran down the steps of the institute. Let’s chalk it up to my panic and not my being oblivious that I ran into someone’s hard back. I let out a small yelp and closed my eyes at the impact. “We have to stop meeting like this” The amused voice of Timothy Stoker filled my ears before I even had a chance to open my eyes. I did though, open my eyes, and that morning’s events came flooding back to me and my eyes must have been so wide as I looked down at myself— wearing his jacket like I owned it.”

“He noticed this too, of course. There was an emotion on his face that I couldn’t quite place yet and I started babbling apologies, adrenaline still coursing through me as I started to pull off the jacket. I think he could tell that I was a little— high strung and he gently grabbed my shoulders to calm me down. To his credit, it did work. I didn’t even notice I was breathing that fast until he started breathing deeply to get me to do the same. By the time I had calmed down, I had definitely already missed the tube. I apologized again and he removed his hands, just shaking his head and telling me it was ok. I don’t know how long we just looked at each other for.” 

>Flashback<

Y/N cleared her throat, grateful for the darkness covering the blush on her cheeks. “Well, I guess now I can give you the jacket back-“ He lifted his hand, interrupting her with a shy smile. 

“Keep it. Looks better on you anyway.” She looked down at herself again, the oversized fabric comfortable but definitely not flattering. It was looking down like this that she noticed two disposable coffee cups at Tim’s feet. Looking back at Tim, she cocked her brow. “Were you— waiting for me?” This was the first of many times she would see Timothy Stoker flustered. Hand rubbing the back of his neck as he looked away from her with flushed cheeks. Even back then, she wanted to see him like that again. 

“I-I figured since I kind of robbed you of your coffee this morning I would try and make it up to you. Gotta say, I didn’t expect you to be working this late. Does Elias not let his assistant leave at a reasonable time?” Again, there was an underlying emotion to his words she didn’t recognize. She shook her head. 

“No, nothing like that. It was my fault really, I got distracted with work and stayed later than I intended.” Y/N looked down at her watch and huffed. “And the last tube passed 20 minutes ago so it looks like I’m walking home tonight.” Tim said nothing for a few moments, lips pursed together as he made a rather pensive expression. She was just about to say something along the lines of ‘You didn’t have to wait for me’ or ‘Are you sure you don’t want the jacket back’ when he broke the silence with a pretty surprising proposal. 

“If you’re comfortable—- I wouldn’t mind walking you home. Only if you’re comfortable, of course, I know we only met today and I totally understand if you don’t want me to know where you live— Actually now that I think about it I probably shouldn’t have even asked, forget I mentioned it—“

“It’s ok!” Both of them looked surprised at her outburst, and for a second she didn’t even realize she had said anything. “I-I mean, I don’t mind. It’s probably a better idea to walk with you than to go alone in the middle of the night. Unless you’re planning on murdering me, of course.” That last part was a bit of a tease and he relaxed, shaking his head. 

“Nope, no murderous intentions here. Scout’s honor.” 

She smiled. 

“I didn’t know you were in the Boy Scouts.”

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Y/N.”

>End Flashback<

“So he walked me home.” Y/N had a sad smile on her face as she spoke. “And he was right, there was so much I didn’t know. Even still.” She cleared her throat. “Tim was a real gentleman, you know? He never tried anything, we just talked and walked together like old friends. The coffee he had brought for me originally was cold by the time we left institute but the fact he brought it for me was touching. He dropped me off, wished me a good rest of my night and left, still leaving his jacket behind. I didn’t get his number or anything, but I had a feeling I would be seeing him again. And I did. The next day, you can guess who was in my little coffee shop again. I didn’t run into him again this time. He was sitting pretty, waiting for me with a cup of coffee at the seat across from him.”

“This started a routine for us. I don’t know if we did it on purpose or accidentally but everyday during the week we would meet up for coffee at 8:30 and he would walk me. Either home or to the tube depending when I finished my shift. This went on for over a year and we were friends. Just friends. There was an unspoken rule between us. For all the times he walked me back to my place, he never set foot inside my flat. I never asked, he never asked, and we never questioned it. There was a tension there, of course, but neither of us ever said anything. And you know how Tim could be. He was confident, flirtatious, it was hard to imagine that he would ever be interested in me seriously. Stupid, right? My streak of being oblivious continued for a while, honestly if the Christmas party hadn’t happened I don’t know if we would have ever gotten together.” 

>Click<


	3. A Staff Christmas Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/N describes the party where she first met Jon and Martin and the events that took place immediately after.

>Click<

“You remember the Christmas party don’t you Jon? It was the first time we met. I know first impressions were important to you back then but I’d like to think I made a rather good one since I’m the one who helped to plan it. You know, I wasn’t even planning on going. Tim had to convince me. December 24th, 2014. Tim and I had met up as usual and gone our separate ways when we got to work. I don’t remember exactly what I was doing at the time, I think I was getting some paperwork done for Gertrude but I can’t be sure. Gertrude Robinson. The way you talk about her now is so— different from how I remember her. She was kind enough, almost grandmotherly. She always seemed worried about me. I wonder if that had anything to do with my working so closely with Elias. She knew so much more than she let on.” 

Y/N hated talking about Gertrude. Just another person who lied to her the whole time she had known them. The way she felt about Elias and Gertrude was strangely similar. Maybe that was why she hated it. She cared for them in the same way and their betrayal hurt equally. And with Elias still alive— it made things more complicated. Being hurt by someone after they have died is one thing. There is closure there. But Elias never gave her that closure and she hated him for it. 

“It was a few hours into my shift when Tim came in Elias’ and I’s shared office. He was lucky, Elias was out on lunch but I scolded him anyway. I was teasing him, of course, but it was worth seeing the soft embarrassment that would rise on his face. I asked him what he was doing there and from behind his back he produced the flyer I had designed for the party. He asked if I was going and naturally, I said no. After knowing me for over a year, you would think he would have gotten used to my aversion to social events but he honestly looked like I kicked his dog or something. He honestly looked so offended, it was hilarious.”

“I asked him if he was going and he said “Why would I go if the main event won’t be there?” I’m so glad Elias wasn’t there because I don’t think he would ever have let me live down the look of total awe on my face. Easy to say I was convinced to attend. It wasn’t anything too lavish, some decorations, good food and classic Christmas music. An easy place to get drunk with your coworkers and have a laugh. I think I got there around—8:30? I had gone home to change into something a bit more casual and by the time I arrived, almost everyone was already there. Tim saw me first and that’s when he introduced me to you and Martin. I quite liked both of you, even if you seemed a bit— strict and Martin was his lovely self as always. You were both working with Tim in research at the time. We all talked and drank and ate and were merry in the true spirit of Christmas. Even Elias stopped by our little group to say hi.”

Her lips pursed and her brows furrowed as she tried to remember events that had taken place almost two years ago. 

“I don’t remember when Tim threw his arm over my shoulder, but I think we were all too drunk and frankly too happy to notice. If I had been sober and that close to him I would have been a blushing mess back then. The night went on without a hitch and I was pretty drunk by the end of it. You weren’t in much better shape yourself by the way, but I lost sight of you when you went out for a smoke. Martin went home a bit earlier than the rest of us so Tim and I were left to our own devices.”

Pause.

“He wasn’t nearly as drunk as I was. Tipsy, absolutely. But I was a total mess. He was the one who suggested we go home and I didn’t have the energy to disagree. You already know I am a sleepy drunk. We had barely started our walk back to my flat when I started pouting about having to move. I nearly plopped down on the sidewalk like a toddler.”

>Flashback<

“Tiiiiiiiiim, my feet hurt.” She whined, leaning against a random building face. They had walked this path together more times than she could count but this time it was faaaar too long of a walk. Her companion laughed at her pout, shaking his head. 

“Why do your feet hurt, Y/N?” If the aforementioned had been sober she might have noticed the teasing affection in his tone. But she didn’t and just pouted more profusely, squeezing her eyes shut with a shake of her head. 

“They just do, I don wanna walk anymore.” He had never seen her like this before. Her cheeks were flushed, hair a bit more a mess than she would normally allow and her blouse one button short of where it would usually be despite the December chill. She looked cute. The word cute did her a disservice but to him, no word could properly describe what she looked like. Blinking away his admiration, he cocked his head. 

“Do you— do you want me to carry you?” It took her a second to process what he said but when it did, her eyes widened slightly. Being carried sounded phenomenal. Being carried by him specifically? Maybe she was hallucinating in her drunken state too. 

“Is— is that —- Is that ok? You wouldn’t mind?” Her shy question was met with him shaking his head and turning his back to her. He leaned down a bit for her. 

“Your chariot awaits, my lady.” Y/N bit her lip and hesitated. She must have hesitated a bit longer than he expected because he looked back at her with a kind smile. “It’s alright Y/N, really. I promise.” Despite her uncertainty, she nodded and moved towards him. Placing her hands on his shoulders, she hopped up and hugged his hips with her thighs. His reaction was instant, supporting her legs with his hands and straightening his back. She had assumed he was strong but he carried her like she weighed nothing. It was lucky that he couldn’t see her anymore cause the blush on her cheeks had nothing to do with the alcohol. Pressed against his back, she wrapped her arm over his shoulders and hid her face in the crook of his neck. 

Then he walked. Holding her in a comfortable silence, both of them thinking about each other but not saying a word. She wasn’t sure how much time passed until they reached her flat but part of her wished it would take hours. It was around 1am when they arrived at her door and much to both their displeasure, he set her down. Y/N had sobered up significantly at this point, standing up straight on her own. 

“Thank you—“ She murmured, partially because she was shy and partially because the cold had reached her now that she had been removed from his body heat. 

“It was my pleasure.” Tim smiled. His eyes crinkled a bit. They just stood in front of her flat, in silence. Her keys felt heavy in her pocket. Their breaths mingled in the cold air. The tension was thick enough that it would have been impossible to see through if it manifested itself as a fog. His eyes were glued to her face, lingering and piercing as they had always been. Her’s were still dulled with the effects of drink but both of them held the obvious question. What now? Breaking their trance he cleared his throat and stepped back from her. “I should probably go, it’s late-“

“Do you want to stay?” 

Tim opened his mouth like he was going to say something but he paused, that unnamed emotion rising in his irises again. He floundered for a moment before he tried again. “Do you want me to stay?” Her voice came out as more of a breath than she had intended. 

“Y-yes.” She cleared her own throat and brushed a stray hair behind her ear. “It’s late and I would feel awful if I made you walk home alone again, especially in this cold. Honestly, you may as well just label me as a terrible person if you think I’m going to let you do that so-“ 

“-please stay.” Her tongue came out to sooth her cold, chapped lips though her bottom lip was quickly trapped between her teeth as her request hung in the air. 

“Ok.”

>End Flashback<

“Nothing happened that night, by the way. I know you don’t need to know that but it mattered to me. He insisted on sleeping on the couch and that we would talk about it in the morning. Whatever “it” was. I was too sleepy to argue with him. And in the morning, he made us breakfast and we did talk. About us. About what we wanted and how things would change between us if we did start an entanglement. There was nothing stopping us and we clearly were interested in each other so it really came down to “Why not?” The fact we were coworkers was something we discussed but we figured since we didn’t even work in the same department it was fine. And there was no weird power dynamic since I wasn’t his boss. So we started dating on Christmas Day of 2014, in my little flat. He left with the cheekiest smile on his face and I hadn’t even kissed him yet.”

Y/N smiled fondly at the memory before looking down at her watch. 10pm. It was late. Martin must have left her to her own devices and didn’t want to bother her. 

“It’s late, I should go. Mr.Lukas gave us all a few weeks of— trauma leave. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Jon. Well, future Jon. Recording paused.”

>Click<


	4. The Beginning of the End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/N reminisces the last moments of normalcy in her life.

>Click<

Y/N threw her bag onto the table next to the recorder and it made a violent sound as it connected with the wood. She plopped down on the nearest seat, her frustration palpable. “I’ve been getting calls from the jail. The jail. The one Elias is staying at. From open to close, as long as visitation hours are available, he calls me.” Her voice was shaking. “I should just block the number. He can’t even give me a single moment of peace to — grieve what I’ve lost, no. No, it seems our boss needs something from me and I am fully inclined to just leave him rotting in that cell for as long as possible without granting him the satisfaction of seeing my face.” Venom dripped off her words, but it was clear they were being fed by something far stronger than just annoyance. 

She pushed out a heavy sigh, massaging her forehead. “It’s not like I don’t already have enough to worry about here. Martin is showing up less and less because of —whatever he and Peter Lukas are doing, Basira is the only one actually taking the recommended time off, and Melanie-“ Y/N’s brows furrowed.”—Melanie is...angry. I know I shouldn’t be surprised, or even worried. But there is something different about it. She almost reminds me of Daisy more than she seems like herself.” Then there were Y/N’s own problems which she would get to later. Things Jon should know if— when, he woke up. “It’s probably nothing. She’s not the only one who is angry.” 

“Recording by Y/N L/N, archival assistant at the Magnus Institute, London on August 13th, 2017. Statement continues. ”

“Jon, do you know what the “Honeymoon Phase” is? If you don’t, it describes the experience of being totally, unequivocally happy with your partner. A time where you can do no wrong in each other’s eyes as you bask in the golden glow of a new relationship. It’s called a phase because it’s supposed to end, revealing the harsher truths about what it is like to share your life with someone else. What Tim and I had— even now I’m not sure how to describe it. I don’t know if we were in love but we certainly loved each other. After spending so long in a stage of oblivious mutual pining, it was like we had already skipped both the honeymoon phase and the following regret straight to the comfortable normality of a relationship much longer than ours had been at the time. Actually our relationship didn’t change all that much after Christmas, at least in the emotional sense. Physically...well, I’m sure you can imagine.”

“I don’t want to say that the four months that followed were the happiest of my life, but they certainly were the most mundanely happy. Back when neither of us had to worry about whether or not we were going to live or die, worry if our friends were really our friends. When your survival is uncertain, the moments in which you are happy trump any other sort of happiness there is. I can only speak for myself, of course, but even Tim knowing what he knew back then seemed so carefree. I wonder— if what happened next had never happened, I think Tim could have let go of what happened to his brother. Eventually.”

Her eyes narrowed a bit as she spoke. 

“When Gertrude disappeared, I was devastated. Elias—“ She swallowed the hard ball of emotion that had bubbled into her throat. “—he had me call the police to report her missing. He wouldn’t let me go down to her office myself at first, claiming to be sparing me the trauma of seeing the blood that had pooled at her desk. On the floor of the archive.”

She scoffed.

“He was nice enough to give me trauma leave for a couple weeks. It makes me sick to think about it. He killed her, he shot her and he looked at me like he actually felt sorry. The fake condolences were enough to convince me of his sincerity, though I’m sure he didn’t have to spend much time at all perfecting his little act. Tim was perfect through all of it. He gave me space when I wanted it, held me and listened to me when I needed it. I think I ruined a lot of his shirts just from crying. Crying—“

Pause.

“He had still been working since he wasn’t close with Gertrude, so he filled me in on what was happening at work. He told me when you were assigned to be the new Head Archivist, how you had asked Tim and Martin to follow you on your transferal since you needed the help. He told me about Sasha, whom I had only ever met in passing, and how she had also transferred with them from her research position. I was proud of you, you know that? I was happy for you. From researcher to head archivist, who wouldn’t be happy for their friend achieving such a high promotion. Maybe I should have been more suspicious of it, but I knew you and if anyone had the patience required to reorganize the mess Gertrude left behind, I knew it would be you. And with those three as your assistants, it seemed perfect.”

“I came back to work a few weeks later, having taken full advantage of my time off to sort myself out. I was still sad, of course I was, but I couldn't let one tragedy derail my whole life. Gertrude wouldn’t have wanted that. A few more weeks passed and everything seemed to be going back to normal. Tim, Martin, Sasha and I would go out for drinks after work frequently and they would tell me all about the archive and the kind of work you would put them up to. I’ll admit, they would complain a bit about how strict you were sometimes, how you were all business and no fun in the office. On the days that you and I would go out for coffee on our lunch break, you would complain about them in turn which was very funny to me. It was like my own little soap opera. I always thought you were too harsh on Martin though. Really, why were you so mean to him?”

“He misses you, you know? We all do but Martin— I don’t know. Your coma hit him really hard.”

“I don’t know how it came up. Maybe I mentioned to Tim or Sasha that you would probably relax if you had someone to help you with more of the clerical work instead of just the research, or actually, maybe I mentioned it to you. Or maybe you mentioned something to Tim in passing about wanting an assistant to help you with the paperwork side of the job and he said something to Elias. I don’t know. Whatever happened, Elias asked you if you were interested in another assistant and you said yes. Tim recommended me. Elias agreed. So he offered me the transferal, saying that it was my decision in the end and that while it would be helpful, he would hate to lose me as his assistant. It was a position I had held for years, but you were all right. I was the perfect person for the job. Having worked with Gertrude, I was already familiar with the archive and the logistics of it. As Elias’ assistant I had more than enough experience. I agreed.”

“That was the day I signed away my life. Did Tim regret recommending me when he found out what it meant? Did you regret asking for another assistant? Or did it even matter? Had I signed myself away years ago, binding myself to Elias when I became his assistant? I used to think about that a lot actually. Elias could have just transferred me to you, he had the power to do it, so why ask? Part of me thinks he needed you to ask first, for someone to recommend me so that whoever asked me to be a part of the archive would be complicit in my new hostage situation to which I was still oblivious. Just another thing to add to the pile he could pull things to manipulate and hurt us with. It doesn’t matter now. Either way he got what he wanted when he made me your direct assistant. A liaison to the outside world, someone to share your load.” 

“I suppose I was a bit lucky though, I showed up a bit before everything went to hell and just in time to hand you my first statement. Case #0112905, Statement of Lee Rentoul regarding the murder of his associate Paul Noriega.”

>Click<


	5. Working

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/N updates Jon on what is happening presently and reminds him of happier days in the Archive.

>Click<

The surrounding sounds changed. Where once the recorder would have been picking up the gentle lull of the Archive, now it was picking up the sounds of the stereotypical London flat. There were the muffled sounds of cars driving past, the sound of a liquid being poured, probably tea. A chair scrapped gently on the ground as it was pulled back so Y/N could sit. “Sorry, I know it’s been a few days since I’ve had a chance to record again. Not that it will matter much in the end. Hopefully when you wake up you’ll be able to listen to these tapes in one sitting. You won’t even notice how much time has passed between recordings.”

She paused. 

“There is a reason for my… absence though. Basira has been getting rid of the tape recorders at the institute. I don’t know if it is her way of coping with Daisy’s death and still being a hostage of the institute, one last “Fuck you,” to Elias and The Eye. I managed to sneak this one away before she got to it. It’s strange. Before, they would turn on by themselves, appear out of nothing but since your coma they have been— stagnant. Dormant.”

“Elias’s calls haven’t stopped. I’ve blocked the number—numbers multiple times but somehow he keeps finding a way to get through to me. He never leaves a message, he doesn’t have to. I-“

Y/N swallows. 

“I know he wants to talk to me. There are so many questions I still need answered, things I haven’t even told you about yet- No. I’ll get there. I shouldn’t keep letting myself get ahead of myself. You need to hear the whole story. Context. That way you- we can understand.” 

“After I started working in the Archive, things changed. I mean, obviously they changed. And for a while, it was a good change. I was working in the same department as my friends and my boyfriend, I was expanding my skills into research and I was talking to people. Real people about their experiences. I wasn’t entirely unaware of the paranormal. How could I be when I had been working for Elias for so long? Other than maybe Sasha, I would say I was the most experienced one of us. Even though Martin had been the first one of our little group to join the Institute, Sasha and I were more hands on than the rest of you.”

“It was thrilling. And I liked having you as my boss too. We worked together very naturally, bouncing ideas off of each other when you would let me sit in on a statement. Plus, I think you liked having me around because I knew what I was doing. At least— we thought I knew. And working in the Archives, I felt close to Gertrude in a strange way. Even though she had left the place a total mess, I wanted to do right by her. That always struck me as odd, you know. Sasha and I would talk about it sometimes, despite Tim’s points about her “just getting old.” That woman was sharp, when she did things, they were with a purpose. To be honest, even now I don’t understand why she left it in such a mess after everything she did for it.”

“Tim and I’s relationship continued to blossom. Of course, I tried to keep PDA to a minimum around the rest of the team but you know how he was. Persistence doesn’t give him justice. If we were in the same room, he would always have to be touching me in some way. Running his finger tips over my arm, holding my hand, resting his head on top of mine. Small reminders to each other that we were there, that we were real. I know it would annoy you sometimes, but I liked it. I could never really be upset with him, you know? I didn’t have it in me.”

“2015 went by without much to be spoken about. Sasha and I grew pretty close, Martin was still— well Martin and you seemed to be settling right into your new role. Things were so mundane that I nearly forgot about Tim and I’s one year anniversary. Tim remembered though. He may not have seemed like the type, but he was more sentimental than I think any of us gave him credit for. He actually got Sasha and Martin to help him with a surprise for me. And before you say anything, he didn’t ask you because he didn’t think it was your area, no because he didn’t want you to be involved. Plus, since you didn’t know anything, you were the perfect distraction. It was so cheesy...”

>Flashback<

“Who decided it was a good idea to work on Christmas?” Y/N whined, stretching her arms over her head in a feeble attempt to quell her aching muscles. Jonathan looked at her, part sympathetic, part amused in his own way. 

“I never asked you to stay here, Y/N. You’re free to go home if you want to, I’ll be alright here.” This statement was shot down almost instantly by the young assistant. 

“Absolutely not. If there is one thing worse than having to work on Christmas, it’s having to be alone on Christmas in a creepy old Archive.” They both laughed at her remark and he shook his head. 

“Creepy? Oh yes, file cabinets are certainly terrifying. If you aren’t careful, you might find one actually containing something of use.” There was a twinge of bitterness to his tease, though he tried to hide it. She glanced at him, lips pursed. They had been working a lot recently. There was no real telling why but it felt right to be here, reading statements, doing research. It felt important, to her at least. 

“Any luck with the Leitner-“ Her thought was interrupted by a shy knocking on the office door. The two occupants glanced at each other knowingly, Y/N smiling softly. 

“Come in Martin.” Said archival assistant opened the door just enough to poke his head inside. 

“Oh! Y/N are you busy right now?” He looked between Y/N and Jon, still keeping the door as it was. She turned to look at Jon, who shrugged and shook his head before she looked back at her friend. 

“Not particularly, I was just helping Jon with some paperwork. Speaking of which, what are you still doing here Martin? It’s almost 8, your shift ended hours ago-“ Again she was interrupted by Sasha pushing her own head past Martin to look inside. “Sasha? What are you-“

“You are asking far too many questions, Y/N.” Teased the other woman. There was mischief glinting in her eyes, and Martin seemed excited too though a bit more nervous than his companion. Y/N eyes narrowed a bit, suspicion rising. 

“What are you two up to?”

“A better question would be, “What are you three up to?”” Sasha sing-songed her words, gesturing for Y/N to get up and come to the door. Again, she looked at Jon who looked just as puzzled as she was. A soft sigh, kind of like the sigh a mom sighs when she knows her children are up to no good, escaped her and she stood from her seat, making her way to the door. When she reached it, the two assistants kept her from opening it all the way. “Close your eyes!”

“What?”

“Close your eyes!” And despite her protests, she did. She could hear Jon stand from where he had been sitting, probably just as curious as she was. The door opened. A few moments passed before she heard Martin finally give her permission to open her eyes. When she did, she was greeted by candlelight and rose petals. Jon nearly had a heart attack behind her but she didn’t really notice, enamored by the sight. The rose petals and candles on the floor made a path through the Archives, leading somewhere she couldn’t see yet. Her gaze rose to Sasha, who was smiling coyly. “Your Prince Charming awaits.” Martin was otherwise preoccupied reassuring Jon that yes, the Archive wouldn’t burn down and that yes, they were going to clean all of it up in the morning. Y/N watched as he and Sasha practically dragged Jon out of the Archive before focusing her attention back on the neatly created trail. 

She followed it slowly. The air was thick with the smell of burning wax and flowers, not unpleasantly so. Seeing the Archive in the flickering lights of weak fire lent some credibility to her earlier statement about it being creepy. She didn’t have to walk long before she found him. 

Tim was sitting at a table, legs spread and he leaned back in his seat. He was confident, smug almost. And she smiled. “Happy anniversary, love.” 

>End Flashback<

Y/N laughed 

“Who else but Timothy Stoker would think to have a romantic dinner in the Archives? And it really was romantic. I felt so unbelievably loved that night. We talked and laughed, drank a bit more than we should have. Don’t worry, we left before we got to see how much of a voyeur Elias really was.”

“Maybe we should have burned down the Archive that night.”

>Click<


	6. A Few Weeks Later

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things have begun to shift at the institute, both in the past and the present.

>Flashback<  
"Are you sure Martin is alright?" Y/N asked as she walked along side the Head Archivist as they returned from a late lunch. "It's not like him to be gone for so long." Jon glanced at her from behind his glasses and shrugged, albeit in a very nonchalant way. 

"He did text me to inform me of his absence. if he's ill he is probably taking the time to recover and rest which is exactly what he should be doing." Despite his reassurance, she couldn't help the light gnawing of anxiety at her stomach. 

"You know how Martin is, he always put other people's wellbeing over his own and I just can't see him leaving his work for someone else to do without saying anything. He hates being an inconvenience, Jon." The man in question scoffed under his breath and earned himself a not-quite teasing elbow to the side from his companion. 

"Sorry, sorry, you know I don't mean it." She let out a hmph at this, eyes narrowed at him. 

"It doesn't matter if you don't mean it, it's rude. Martin has done nothing but be nice to you the whole time he has known you and you do nothing but berate him in turn. Poor boy probably thinks you hate him."

"I do not!" Jon argued as they finally arrived back in their shared office space. 

"Then act like it!" She retorted, though there was no bite in her words. Y/N set her bag down in her seat, happy to be rid of the extra weight for a while. "I'm going to see how the other two are doing and I think I might check on Martin after work. Would you like to join me, boss?"

"Picked that up from Tim have you?" It wasn't often one would see Jon holding back an affectionate smile like he was in that moment, but Y/N was used to it. A benefit of working so closely with him while not being considered a nuisance. 

"It's a fitting title~" 

He shook his head at her, biting back a laugh in the process. "No I don't think I will be joining you. I'm sure Martin would rather just one of us go." He paused. "Like you said, he wouldn't want to be an inconvenience to more people than he has to be." 

>End Flashback<

>Click<

Muffled conversation could be heard, the distinct sound of fabric chaffing together distorting the audio. 

"Basira, really, I'm fine-"

"Really? Because I know for a fact that you haven't taken any of the time off Peter gave us. I've been gone for two weeks and you are exactly where I left you."

"I don't know if you've noticed Basira, but we are down two archival assistants, and one head Archivist. Like you said, you've been gone, Martin has been "promoted" and Melanie..." There's an exasperated sigh, followed by more shifting. "I can't afford to put my life on hold, not right now-"

"Why not? You don't owe this place anything, especially now that you know what it is."

"It's not about that, besides it's not like I can quit even if I wanted to."

"I know you're not ok, Y/N. Working yourself to death isn't going to help anyone, it's not what he-"

"Don't."

A thick tension settled over the two women and neither of them spoke for what felt like minutes, though it was probably closer to a few seconds at most. Another sigh.

"I'm sorry Y/N, I didn't mean to..." Her words trailed off, or maybe they were muffled by the fabric. It was difficult to tell. 

"No, it's ok. You're probably right. I just --- don't really know what to do with myself these days. Working, it helps."

It was almost like one could have been able to hear the cogs turning in Basira Hussain's head as she carefully considered Y/N and her words. Maybe it was the less than convincing smile, or the way her eyes didn't shine like they used to, or the complete lack of effort in her attempt to lie about her mental state. It could have been any of those things that compelled Basira to drop the issue, holding back a defeated sigh. 

"Promise me you'll take a break, at least. And ask for help, if you need it. Please."

"I promise."

>Click<  
>Flashback<

Tim perked up when he saw her familiar form bouncing towards him among filing cabinets. He was quick to set down the box he had been holding in his arm and the space was just as quickly refilled with her form against him. Their laughs mingled in the air. "Well well, back from your lunch date with the boss?" He teased, looking down at her. There was something about the mischief in his eyes that she would never get sick of. She smiled in turn.

"Why yes, it was lovely and he was a complete gentleman. You may very well have some competition, Timmy." Her hands traveled up the expanse of his chest and settled on the collars of his colorful button-up. His rested on her hips, thumbs sneaking under the hem of her shirt and caressing flesh. 

"Competition? From Jon? And here I thought Elias was more your type." Y/N laughed and smacked his chest gently. 

"Elias? What on Earth gave you that idea?" He shrugged.

"Oh I don't know. He's pretty charming and handsome for a man of his age."

"Are you sure you aren't the one who fancies him?"

"You would like that wouldn't you." Tim waggled his eye brows at her before leaning forward and pressing a soft kiss to her temple. Her eyes squeezed shut and she giggled at the sudden contact. "Besides, Jon is much better suited for our Archival love pentagon."

"Love pentagon? Oh that's new. Quite the interesting dynamic we have built in this office comedy haven't we?" She opened her eyes. "Speaking of which, Martin has been gone for a while and I'm worried about him." Tim's expression fell at the mention of their colleague and friend. 

"Jon said he was sick."

"Yes but it's been almost two weeks and I'm concerned about him. I'm planning on visiting him after work, maybe with some soup." Tim gazed down at her affectionately and pulled her closer, wrapping her in a hug with a soft sigh. 

"How can you be so good all the time? It's hard to live up to your standard." She buried her face in the crook of his neck and held him tight. 

"You are good, Tim, you know that. Do you want to come with me? I'm sure Martin would appreciate it. " His chin rested on top of her head. 

"I know, I'm just messing with you, love. But unfortunately I must decline your offer. It's the second Friday of the month."

Her mouth opened into a O in realization and she pulled back just a bit to look at him. "Dinner with your parents?" He nodded, mocking disappointment before breaking into a smile. "Tell your mum hi from me?"

"I always do and she always says-"

"Make sure you treat Y/N well, Timothy." They finished in unison.

"I'll see you tonight then."

"Of course."

>End Flashback<

>Click<

The audio buzzed, a soft and yet somehow intense high-pitched hum overlaying the still muffled voices. 

"What?" 

"I'm promoting you, so to speak. "

"Promoting me?"

"Yes. Elias spoke very highly of you and seeing as we are currently lacking an Archivist, I feel confident entrusting those responsibilities to you."

"With all due respect, I couldn't give two shits about what Elias has said about me." 

Peter Lukas' wry laugh filled the room in a hollow way. It was like his presence held no weight at all. 

"I can't blame you. Not very well liked these days, our Elias. Our methods differ and I find his rather crude. I heard you were a key player in his arrest."

She doesn't respond to this. 

"Anyway, if you won't take the job because of Elias, Martin also recommended you for the position."

Y/N hesitated. 

"Where is Martin? Isn't it more your brand to send him to tell us things? Why are you telling me this yourself?"

A disinterested sigh followed her questions and for a moment, her concern was palpable. Had something happened to Martin, had he- 

"Martin asked me to speak to you myself and I agreed. Think of it as a gesture of good faith-"

She relaxed.

"-besides, talking to someone who feels as lonely as you is always a pleasure."

"I don't-"

"Ah ah. Hard to lie to the Avatar of the Lonely about how you feel. Don't get used to seeing me though, Martin is enough." 

It would have been hard to tell what was going through her head in the following silence. At this point it was clear that the recorder was tucked within a bag of some sort as it was picked up again and the sounds of fabric shifting overwhelmed anything else for a few seconds. 

"Interim."

"I'm sorry?"

"The position. I'll accept it as an interim post. As soon as Jon wakes up, it's his."

Peter seemed to consider her terms for a moment, though it was obvious what his answer would be in the end. 

"If that is what you want to call it, fine. Though, if the former Archivist does happen to wake up then I'm not sure how much luck you would have in maintaining the position regardless of your own feelings on the matter. Interim Head Archivist. Does have a nice ring to it doesn't it?"

"Another thing."

"Hm?"

"Why did you accept the role as head of the institute?"

Now seemed it was Peter's turn to hesitate. 

"Why do you ask?"

"An Avatar of the Lonely, working as the head of the base of the Eye. I know you aren't just doing this as a favor for Elias."

"You're right about that. I have my own motives for accepting his proposition. Motives which Martin is helping with at the moment. Don't worry, part of my agreement with him is that I will keep the rest of you safe. Something tell me that includes keep you out of my plans so, I will respect Martin's wishes on this matter and keep you in the dark."

"Careful, you almost sound like Elias."

"Is that meant to be an insult?"

"That's up to you, Peter."

"Hm."

"Have I offended you?"

"No, though, Elias failed to mention your death wish when he was telling me about you."

"Perhaps he doesn't know me as well as he thinks."

For the second time, Peter laughed. This time it was genuine and full. "He didn't mention you were funny either."

"Like I said."

More shuffling indicated that someone had moved to the door. "You know, you almost remind me of the last Archivist."

"Jon?"

"No, Gertrude."

Silence.

"I'll leave you to your work, Archivist."

The ringing and buzzing faded, and Y/N released a breath.

"Jesus."

>Click<

>Click<

The now familiar sounds of the apartment filter through the recorder. 

"I found the recorder inside of my backpack. I left it right here when I left and yet..."

She paused.

"Jon, you aren't awake yet. And as far as I know there aren't any other recorders that have popped up like they used to. Not just that, but the recorder was definitely on earlier. I don't know how long it was there but...I don't know what this means. I'm not sure I want to linger on it too much. What it could mean for me. "

"Statement continues."

>Click<

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to apologize for how long it took me to put out this update. The next one should come a lot sooner than this one! Thank you for enjoying and reading my story!


	7. The First Signs of Danger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/N reveals her first encounter with Michael and how she found Martin after he was absent for 2 weeks.

>Flashback<

Y/N held the warming plastic bag in her arms as she walked through the streets of London. It was still a bit cold, though they were coming out of the winter months and getting closer to spring so the gentle chill did nothing against her layered sweaters and piping hot soup. The soup in question was from her and Martin's shared favorite place, a little family owned joint they had found together during the early days of their friendship. It was a happy coincidence when they found out they lived shockingly near each other. It wasn't more than a 10 minute walk to his place from the soup shop. She-

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" At first, she had thought she hit a wall or something as her shoulder connected with him. There was a strength and a sharpness she had never felt from a person before. As soon as her eyes focused on him, the apologies fell out of her. He was tall with curling blonde locks which fell in a frame around his face, his lips spread into an almost too wide smile. 

"It's no trouble. After all, no harm done." His words were kind enough but there was something... unnerving about him. It was like if she looked at his features too closely, they would shift slightly, change right before her eyes. On instinct, she hugged the soup closer to her chest, the heat moving through her clothes. "I"m Michael."

"Y/N."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Y/N." His smile seemed to widen somehow. She took a micro step back, turning back towards her destination with a polite nod. 

"Sorry again, Michael." Without letting him get another word in, she left. Even as she walked away she could feel his eyes burning into the back of her neck. It was unnerving, and the anxious feeling in her gut was practically screaming now. There was something familiar about him. 

When she arrived at Martin's front door, it was hard to say what she noticed first. It wasn't the stray worms in the corner of her eyes, it wasn't the tense silence that filled the apartment complex. It was probably the cloth peaking out from under the door. Her brow furrowed and she lifted her hand. Knuckles wrapped against the door. There was movement on the other side of the door, but no response. She tried again, this time knocking a bit harder. 

"Martin, it's Y/N! Are you ok? Jon said-" Before she could even finished her sentence, the door was flung open and she was face to face with a terrified, yet relived, Martin Blackwood. He lunged for her and hid his face in the crook of her neck, arms wrapping around her. The soup fell to the floor, long forgotten. Y/N held the trembling younger man against her, eyes wide with concern. "What happened?" 

>End Flashback<

"After Martin told me what had happened I had to practically force him to come talk to you. He was so... afraid back then. And even though he had been terrified out of his mind he was still smart enough to survive the encounter with Prentiss. I called Tim on our way to the institute and he didn't even hesitate to cancel the dinner with his parents. He said, "You guys need me right now, my parents will understand." And he was right. We did need him. You and Sasha were both working overtime so I knew you would both still be there when we arrived. I could see that you were worried about him, even if you didn't want to admit it. We all knew what Jane Prentiss was capable of and her choosing to target one of us was-- concerning to say the least. My meeting with Michael was nothing but a small inconvenience in comparison to what he had gone through, so I totally forgot about it. Until later, of course."

"I was the one who told Elias what was going on. He feigned concern very well back then. He said he would "look into it". I believed him, I thanked him for looking after us."

She scoffed.

"He recommended that we spend as much time here as possible, and to stick together if we were to leave. Keeping this in mind, we made our own plans. You suggested Martin stay in the Archives since Prentiss knew where he lived. The rest of us were relatively safe, as far as we knew, but Tim decided this was as good an opportunity as any for us to move in together. After almost a year and a half of dating, it probably would have happened eventually but now it was a matter of safety, and the last thing Tim wanted to do was leave me alone."

"I offered both you and Sasha somewhere to stay as well. Sasha refused because she felt she was far enough away from the institute that she would be safer there. I made her promise that if anything happened she would come to my place or the Archive right away. Sasha-"

Y/N paused. 

"Sasha was always very independent, strong, intelligent. Tim thought she should have been the new Archivist when Elias first appointed you. Something about "sexist bullshit" and "tradition"."

Laughter filtered into the recorder.

"Always so eloquent, our Tim. It wasn't because he didn't like you, he did like you. He just thought she was more qualified. I think you would agree, if you were here. I wonder, what would have been different if she had been the archivist in your place?"

"Tim sold his old place and moved into mine. To be fair, even before the Prentiss incident, Tim had plenty of clothes at my place, slept here regularly. We fell into the role of roommates very naturally. It was like there was a silver-lining to what was happening to us."

"Still, when Sasha came into work with a bloody arm, talking about a 'Michael", it was clear there was something larger at play."

>Click<


	8. Meeting the Spiral: Sasha Edition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/N and Sasha discuss their own meetings with Michael as they approach the day the institute was attacked.

>Flashback<

"Do you think we have time to stop for coffee today?" Hand in hand, Tim and Y/N walked their usual route to work. She lifted her free hand, glancing down at her watch and nearly grimacing at the time. 

"We're already running late, I think we are just going to have to ask Martin to make us something until we have a chance to grab lunch." At her words, Tim mocked a pout and let out a soft whine.

"Are you suuuure?" She laughed at him and shook her head.

"It's your fault we're late, you have no room to complain! If anything I should be the one whining." Her nose crinkled as she laughed at his expression. "What?" He let go of her hand and slung his arm over her shoulder, pulling her close to his side. Leaning his face down next to her ear, he smirked. 

"From what I remember, there is a very mutual reason for our tardiness." A light blush dusted her cheeks and she lightly smacked his chest. 

"A reason which YOU initiated!" 

He laughed, leaning back up. "Can you blame me? You're irresistible in the morning~" She scoffed under her breath, cocking a brow. 

"Well, you can have fun explaining that reasoning to Jon." Tim waggled his brows down at her. 

"Oh shall I? I'll make sure to go into graphic details about this morning's extracurriculars--" His voice faded from her as a familiar gnawing in the pit of her stomach reared it's head out of the blue. On instinct, her eyes traveled around their surroundings. There was nothing. Not until she looked into the window of their favorite coffee shop. 

Curling blonde hair. 

She sucked in a quick breath and Tim's expression morphed into one of confusion, twinged with concern. He tried to follow her gaze but there was nothing, or no one, he could see that he would expect to draw that sort of reaction from his girlfriend. Tightening his grip on her gently, he asked, "Hey, are you ok?" Y/N pulled her gaze away from the man she knew as Michael, who hadn't even looked at her yet, and blinked up at Tim. She cleared her throat and nodded. 

"Yeah I'm ok, sorry. I guess I spaced out." Tim wasn't quite sure if he believed her yet, but he nodded and smiled gently. 

"Really did a number on you didn't I?"

"Shut up!"

>End Flashback<

>Click<

"That must have been the same day Sasha also encountered Michael for the first time. I'll admit, my own first meeting with him had faded from my mind with the amount of energy we were putting into finding Prentiss and dealing with her "little friends". The worm problem wasn't too bad at that point yet. We would see them at the entrance of the Institute, step on them when we had that chance but they largely didn't bother us. It was April 1st so Tim did what Tim always does."

Y/N let out a breath that could have been a laugh if she had put more force into it. 

"I never thought I would miss those dumb pranks."

"The rest of the day when by without much else to speak of. Martin thought he saw one of the worms inside the Archives so we all spent half an hour looking for it. We never did find it but it wasn't like we had much else to get done. I tried to spend some extra time with Martin throughout the day. I felt bad for him. Even if he didn't complain and went on with his life, I could tell he was homesick. He missed his Mum too and I promised I would check up on her when I had the chance. You were keeping yourself busy with statements. And Sasha... well, you remember. She didn't say anything about Michael until the next day, when she thought she had enough evidence for you to take it seriously."

"I know you would have believed her with less. It's hard to remain objective and hold the people you know and trust to same standard as civilians coming in to give their statements. You were always a skeptic Jon, more than I ever was. Not that I can really blame you." 

She sighed gently. 

"Being a skeptic would be a welcome relief right now."

"Anyway, Martin called me after he called you. You're great Jon, but when it comes to giving comfort, you were never really the best at it. Honestly I think Martin only called me cause he panicked when he saw her arm. It wasn't as bad as he made it seem over the phone but the poor guy had just been woken up. I'm surprised he didn't have a panic attack or something."

>Flashback<

"Hold still, this will hurt a bit."

"I told you I'm fine-" Sasha's protest were interrupted by a pained hiss, jaw clenching at the sudden burning of disinfectant against her wound. Y/N glanced up apologetically before refocusing on her task. Gently dabbing away the excess disinfectant with a cloth, she turned and reach into the first aid kit by her side, pulling out a Neosporin and a plaster. There was silence in the room. Jon had yet to arrive, though he was on his way, Tim was out getting a coffee for Sasha, and Martin was well... he was doing some late night worm clean up. Y/N smoothed the plaster over the wound and leaned back, looking proudly at her work. 

"There, good as new! Now-" She crossed her arms. "-are you going to tell me how this happened?" Her friend's brows were furrowed in thought. " Sasha James."

"Hush, I'm thinking." Y/N opened her mouth to speak but she huffed and nodded. Sasha looked around the room for a few moments. Was she trying to get her bearings? "Y/N..." At the sound of her name, Y/N perked up with intrigue. 

"Yeah?"

"Do you know someone named Michael?" Her blood ran cold and the gnawing that seemed to plague her at the mere mention of the man resurfaced. Sasha must have noticed the blood drain from her friend's face because she grabbed her hands and leveled her eyes at her. "Tell me."

"I-I ran into him. When I went to check on Martin and then I thought I saw him yesterday." Her grip on Sasha's hands tightened for a moment at the memory. "Did he do this to you?"

"Yes-- Well sort of. That's what I need to talk to Jon about. It's about Jane Prentiss and ---Michael I guess. What do you know about him?"

"I don't know much. I maybe spoke two sentences to the guy and he seemed normal enough-"

"But there was something wrong about him too right?" Y/N nodded carefully. "Like he was-"

"Sharp." She finished. Sasha was quick to agree. 

"Exactly." 

"....Where the fuck is Jon?"

>End Flashback<   
"After Sasha and I explained to you what had happened to the both of us, it was clear that something was coming. The fact that Michael had mentioned us all by name to Sasha meant he had at the very least been watching us for a while. He had orchestrated our meetings with him, making himself known on purpose. At the time, we didn't know if he really wanted to help us or what else he wanted." 

Her back ached. 

"To be honest, I still don't know what Michael really wanted. He isn't even Michael anymore though is he? The entity we now know to be the spiral has taken the form of Helen. She is different from him. Almost helpful." 

Y/N snorted. 

"Almost." 

"A few days after Sasha gave her statement, Melanie came in for the first time. I bet she regrets that choice now though." 

>Click<

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the shorter chapter. We are almost to the more involved sections so this is really more of filler!


	9. The troubles of Today

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A look into the goings on at the Archives in the present.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the shortness of the chapter and the inconsistent upload schedule. Now the the 6 week hiatus has started for TMA I am hoping to upload more regularly! Think of this as a filler chapter to establish more of Y/N's interpersonal relationships to the other characters. The next chapter will be much longer as we approach the Prentiss attack.

>Click<   
"What, so now that Lukas has put you in charge you think you can just boss me around?"

The sound of rustling paper that had been filtering into the tape record halted. 

"That isn't what is happening." Y/N voice was quiet and measured. Quite the opposite from the 

"No? Then what the hell is this?"

"I was just asking for help, Melanie. That's all. I can't force you to do anything, you know that."

"Do I? For all I know you could be turning into the same thing as Jon."

Y/N's breath caught in her throat for a moment but her voice didn't change. 

"I just asked if you wanted to help out. You could have just said no if you didn't want to." 

There was a slam, the sound of skin connecting with wood. The tension in the room was steadily rising. The ordinarily monotone spinning of the recorder seemed to peak just enough that someone would have noticed if they had been listening carefully. 

"How can you just keep working like this? You KNOW what this place is, Y/N and you're still doing exactly what it wants! What HE would have wanted you to do!" 

"What is the alternative Melanie?! Spend the rest of my life doing nothing?! Just wallowing, waiting for Jon to MAYBE wake up one day? We can help people here. There is so much we still don't know about all of this and we are literally sitting in the domain of the thing that KNOWS. We can-"

"This place doesn't help people! This place, Elias, Jon, hell even you have done nothing but hurt people. People have died because of this place or have you already forgotten about Tim and Daisy?" Melanie scoffed. "With the way Elias always looked after you I wouldn't be surprised if you hadn't even cared about Tim in the first place-"

"That's enough, Melanie!" When had Basira arrived? 

No one said anything after that, not for a good while. The whirring that had peaked seemed to drop back down to its normal lull, it's sound being the old indication that there was still anything to record at all. 

"Y/N, I didn't mean-"

Melanie was interrupted by a sharp intake of breath. Y/N hesitated before speaking and while her voice had been tired before, now it sounded exhausted. Exhausted, yet firm. 

"What Elias did to you wasn't anyone's fault. It wasn't mine, it wasn't Jon's, and you taking your anger out on us won't make what happened to your father go away. It's not our fault that you started working here. It's not our fault that the world almost fucking imploded. The only person who knew anything was Elias and he is gone." 

"That's not-"

"If you don't want to help me then that's fine, but I will not sit here and let you blame everyone else for the choices that you made." 

....

"Y/N." Barisa's voice was low, though it was unclear if she was trying to comfort the other or warn her not to say anything else. 

"I have work to do." Y/N's words weren't meant as a request, they were a command. There was no arguing with the implication of what she was saying and Basira understood that. 

"Come on." Soft footsteps moved further away from the recorder. "Melanie." After a few pregnant seconds, a second pair of footsteps followed and a door was forcefully shut, it's impact seeming to ring for a few seconds. Then there was silence again. Not even breathing. 

Again, skin broke on wood though this time it was much more violent. A strangled yell was pushed out of Y/N, half in frustration, half in pain. 

Heavy panting. 

Sobbing.

Collapsing into a chair. 

>Click<

>Click<

The steady beat of a heart rate monitor paired with the mechanical sound of the respirator made for an eerie duet. There was muffled conversation from outside of the room, the only evidence that those in the room weren't alone. 

"Your nurses are nice. They even bandaged my hand for free." Y/N's voice sounded different than the last time it had been recorded. A forceful optimism mingled with genuine relief as she spoke to a comatose Jonathan Sims. "I'm sorry I haven't visited in a while. I've been recording tapes for you but that's not the same as actually talking to you so I thought--" Her words seemed to fade. She sighed. "I don't know what I thought."

Pause. Y/N sighed again but this time in was like all the air in her lungs were pushed out. 

"I don't know what I'm doing, Jon. I've been trying to keep everyone together, keep the archives in order to figure something, anything, out. But I've found nothing." She was frustrated. 

"Gertrude's tapes are gone, the normal statements do nothing to answer any questions and all I have to work with is the statement you recorded with Gerard Keay. It's not enough. I'm not-"

...

"I'm not enough, Jon. I need you to wake up. I can't lose anyone else, even if it means playing nice with the Eye I have to keep everyone safe but I can't do that without you. "

The only response she got was the monotonous beeping of the heart rate monitor. Not even a jump.

"Jon, I-"

A door opens and there is a shocked silence for a few moments. 

"Martin?"

>Click<


	10. Infestation and Distortion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/N lays out the events of the Prentiss attack on the institute.

>Flashback<  
"Sasha! Can you hand me another canister?" Y/N called from the kitchen, nose crinkling with disgust as she looked down at the small group of worms that had gathered in the center of a tile. Ever since Martin had moved into the archives, it seemed that the worms had made it their mission to get inside, though that probably had nothing to do with Martin and everything to do with Prentiss's hatred for the institute. 

"Yeah! Just a second!" Her friend's muffled voice was quickly followed by the sound of a cabinet closing and rushed footsteps before she finally passed through the door frame. Sasha tossed her the now very familiar canister and Y/N was able to make quick work of the vermin. She brought the nozzle up to her face and blew away the excess with a mischievous smirk. 

"Who you gonna call?" The other woman shook her head in mock disappointment at the reference. 

"You and Tim with your references, honestly, you're just as bad as each other." Y/N cocked a brow. and smiled. 

"But you understood it." The two women regarded each other for a few moments before they both burst out laughing, the sounding carrying. 

"Yeah alright, you caught me." Sasha turned and started rummaging through the drawers. "Do you want any tea? I know Martin is the resident maker but it feels--- rude? To have him always make it I mean." Y/N leaned against the counter, arms crossed loosely over her chest. 

"I'm alright, thanks Sash." She glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. "I wonder what is taking Tim so long-- He was just supposed to give Martin some new sheets." Sigh. "I hope he isn't teasing him too much. Poor Martin has gone through enough without Tim's brotherly jokes." By her side, Sasha let out a soft hum as she filled a kettle. 

"I'm not surprised, I mean, he must have gotten a lot of practice from being around Danny." Y/N's eyes flickered to Sasha, cocking her head to the side. 

"Who?" Sasha's movements stopped and for a moment, her eyes widened. If Y/N hadn't known better, she would say she looked guilty. Like she had said something she shouldn't have. Her friend opened her mouth to say something when the sound of racing footsteps drew both of their attention to the door. The form of Timothy Stoker replaced the empty space and he had the most pleased grin either of them had ever seen on his face. The two women glanced at each other, mutually confused as the man walked up to them. Stepping in front of Sasha, he held out his hand. He looked completely vindicated.  
"You owe me a fiver." It took Sasha a minute to process what he meant, but when she got it her expression morphed into one of complete disbelief and awe. 

"You're joking." Tim's smile would have widened if he could and he shook his head. 

"Nope." He popped the p. "Hand it over." Y/N looked between the two of them, utterly confused. '

"What is happening?" Her question was left unanswered and Sasha tried to wrap her mind around what Tim was saying. 

"Do you know who it is??"

"He wouldn't say, but it's DEFINETLY one of us in the archives." Sasha raised her brows in surprise. 

"One of us? No way---" Y/N pouted and reach out, grabbing Tim's sleeve. 

"What are you guys talking about?" She whined. Tim glanced over at her, eyes twinkling. 

"Martin has a crush on someone." 

>End Flashback<

>Click<  
"Y/N-- I didn't expect to see you here." The surprise in his voice was laced with another emotion that was hard to place. 

"You haven't seen me much these days at all though, have you?" Her question was probably more scathing than she intended, and neither of them spoke for a few moments. Instead, there was the sounds of footsteps approaching and a chair scraping quietly against the ground. 

Pause. 

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that." Y/N murmured. 

"No, I know. I'm sorry. I know I haven't been around much. I can't imagine how it's been down there." She hummed softly in response. 

"I don't envy you, though. Working so closely with Peter." This time it was his turn to hum. 

"Yeah well-- could be worse. I could have been Elias's assistant." They both laughed quietly at the comment, the sound echoing through the otherwise quiet hospital room. It trailed off and the pair were left in that quiet once again. 

...

"He doesn't look peaceful." 

"I know." 

"Even in a coma, he somehow finds a way to look like he is carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders." She sighed softly. " How often do you come here?" 

"As often as I can, I guess. That's why I was surprised to see you when I came in-- You're the first one who had been here at the same time as me. " 

"Not even Georgie?"

"I know she's been here but-- no, I haven't seen her."

...

"I don't blame him, you know?"

"What?"

"Jon-- I don't blame him for what happened. To us, to Sasha, to--" Her voice seemed to catch in her throat. "To Tim. I want him to know that. That's why I came." Her friend didn't respond for a few seconds. 

"Who do you blame?"  
"You know who."

"Voldemort?" Y/N laughed. Genuinely. 

"Who are you and what have you done with Martin?" After the words left her lips, a tense silence fell over them. Right. Jokes like that meant something different now. He cleared his throat. 

"He was calling you, right?"

"How did you know that?"

"Basira mentioned it." He paused. "What are you going to do?"

"I don't know. I have so many questions. Questions that need answers but I know that if I go to him I'm doing exactly what he wants. And I--" 

"--you don't think Tim would approve?" 

"He never was one for working with the enemy, even when it almost killed him. The less I rely on the Eye, the better. Still, is my pride really worth sacrificing the knowledge that I know could help the people around me? Maybe the world?" Her conflict was almost palpable. 

"I understand. Trust me. I'm still trying to figure that out myself."

"Has he been treating you well?"

"Treatment implies that I see him often enough to form an opinion. Speaking of which, did he talk to you at all?"

"Surprisingly, he did. We came to an agreement. I'm still not sure whether he likes me or not." 

"Well he didn't vanish you so that's a good sign."

"He what?"

>Click<

>Click<  
A drink swirled in a glass. 

"I used to think that the Prentiss attack changed everything. To be honest I'm not sure if that was ever true but it made sense at the time. For her to be the catalyst that led our lives into a living hell. No, no... we were in trouble long before Prentiss ever decided to lay her creepy little hands on us."

"That day was no different than any other day really. I was listening in on one of your statements, Andre Ramao I think it was. While you were recording I was looking into Salesa like you had asked. Interesting man, Mr. Salesa. That was far from the last time we would read about him but I won't bore you with those details right now. That's not what this particular section of "Story Time with Y/N" is about. Before I start I just want to say-- I'm sorry Jon. Because I lied to you. About what happened to me that day."

>Flashback<

"Jon do you really think that's a good idea-" Y/N grimaced as she watched her friend and boss stalk towards the spider that was currently attempting to hide in the shadows on the wall. 

"It's fine, Y/N this will just take a second. I see you---" He wrapped a hand around a newspaper and waited until the spider stopped moving. After a moment of hesitation he swung and instinctually Y/N clenched her eyes shut. It was the right call because in the darkness behind her eyelids she was bombarded with the sound of a shelving unit crashing down onto the ground and sounds of exclamation from the aforementioned man. Letting out a soft sigh, she opened her eyes. Jon looked at her with an embarrassed and apologetic expression. He opened his mouth to speak when the door was opened. Sasha poked her head inside the shared office with an equal parts confused and concerned expression. 

"Alright?" She asked, glancing between the pair and the dismayed unit. Jon let out an embarrassed sigh.

"Ah-- yeah, a--- a spider."

"A spider?"

"He tried to kill it and the shelves collapsed." Y/n interjected. 

"I swear-- cheap shelves are--" She sighed, though there was a small smile on her lips. Stepping into the room, Sasha walked towards Jon and took stalk of the damage. "Did you get it?" Jon looked back at the wall, an unconvinced look on his features.

"Ah-- I hope so. Think so. Nasty bulbous-looking thing." Y/N grimaced again and Sasha chuckled. 

"Well, I won't tell Martin." Jon shot her a relived look. 

"Oh god. I don't think I could stand another lecture on their importance to the ecosystem." Jon leaned down and started to pick up the mess he had made. Y/N stood from her own seat, leaving her paperwork behind to help him. 

"Hey I love Martin's ecosystem talks. And spiders are good for the ecosystem Jon, no matter how much you hate them." She teased. Sasha shook her head with a smile and lifted her gaze to the wall. Her eyes narrowed for a moment and she shuffled closer. She let out a soft hum and Jon glanced up at her. 

"What?" He asked. She shook her head again and gestured to the space the shelves had previously occupied. 

"Look." Jon stood, coming next to her and finally noticed what she was pointing at. Y/N focused on her task, choosing just to listen in to their little investigation. This was going to be a headache, she huffed. 

"Oh-- uh-- Got dented when the shelve collapsed I guess." 

"No-- it, it goes right through. I--I thought this was an exterior wall." Now that made Y/N look up. She stood and moved next to Jon, head cocked to the side. 

"She's right, look. There isn't a room on the other side of this but--"  
"It should be an exterior wall." Jon finished. He passed the two women and cleared away some of the debris, pushing away the remnants that obstructed their view. Sasha hummed softly. 

"I--I think it's just plasterboard. Do you see anything?" Y/N stood on her tippy toes to peer over his shoulder. She couldn't see anything, but she could swear-- she could hear something. 

"No, I don't-- think so--" Jon's words trailed off, the space his words had occupied being replaced by the sound Y/N had been hearing getting louder and louder and-- Jon reeled back, pushing Y/N as he went. Her eyes widened and she reached out to clutch Sasha's arm. 

Squirming, wriggling, squelching silver bodies started coming through the whole in the wall. 

"Sasha, Y/N run! Run-!" His words were cut off by the mass of creatures pouring into the space, pushing the trio back. It was like an ocean of worms, covering the floor, rising to cover the desks as well. Y/N's eyes darted around as she clung onto her friends. Where was the Co2 damn it? Jon pulled himself out of her grasp and she cried out. 

"Jon! What are you doing-?" All she could do is watch as he lunged forward to his desk. 

"Almost--" Sasha let out a panicked noise of disbelief. 

"Leave it! It's not-" Before she could continue Jon reached the tape recorder sitting on his desk, the worms surging to meet him. 

"I got it!" He gasped and shook them off as best he could before making his way back to Y/N and Sasha, both of whom were kicking away the intruders as best they could. As soon as he was close enough Y/N grabbed him and tugged him as far away from the worms as she could. From behind her she could hear the door open again. 

"Guys? Is everything- OH CHRIST." Martin Blackwood's voice would have normally been a welcome relief and Y/N spun around to look at him. The relief was gone in an instant when she caught sight of the utterly horrified look on his face. He looked terrified and her heart ached for him.  
"Shut up and get the extinguisher!" Jon's gruff voice forced her to turn back around as she, Sasha, and Jon tried to fight off the worms. It was never ending. Martin was staring. 

"What?" His voice sounded like he wasn't really there. 

"Martin-" She tried but Jon whipped back and yelled. 

"The CO2! Get the goddamn CO2!" He stamped down on a worm that had gotten too close. Martin's eyes came back into focus and widened. 

"Right! Right, right, right right, right, right-" His voice got quieter as he ran off to get the canisters. He must have taken a bit longer than Jon wanted so he yelled again. 

"Now!" 

"Right, right right, right, yep!" The man sped back into the office, clutching an extinguisher in hand before he managed to clumsily toss it to Jon. He pulled out the pin and started spraying everywhere and anywhere he could. The CO2 poured into the room and for a moment, it seemed like it was working. A twing of hope bloomed in Y/N stomach and her grip on Sasha's arm loosened just a bit. It was squashed just as quickly as it came though. As much as the CO2 was quelling the first waves, it couldn't stop the continuous pour of the worms through the whole which just seemed to be getting bigger by the second. Sasha seemed to realize this at the same time as she started tugging Jon and Y/N towards the door. "There's too many--" Martin murmured.

"Just keep spraying!" Sasha yelped, stamping on a worm. Jon's eyes were wide with fear. 

"We-- we need to go." He turned away and pushed the two women to the door, the worms coming up to meet him. Y/N felt Jon grimace as the creeping, crawling creatures tried to find a way inside of him. 

"Where?" Y/N asked. The archives were small, where could they hide really? Jon huffed behind her and he didn't respond. Sasha winced next to her. 

"Damn!"  
"Jon-"

"I just--uh-- just let me think!" He begged. They were running away. Sasha glanced back into the room they had just fled. 

"Do you see Prentiss? If we could get her-" They all shook their heads. Martin had taken hold of Y/N's hand as they ran and he shot a glance back. 

"I--I--I-- I don't see her! I don't see her--" He whimpered. "I don't see her--" Y/N could tell he was panicking. Jon's chest was heaving and he stopped running.

"Jon? Jon!" Sasha tried desperately to bring Jon back from wherever he was in his mind. She gripped his shoulders and started to shake him. "JON!" Y/N turned and saw a surge of worms coming up behind her two friends and she shoved them forward. 

"Keep going!"

"This way!" Martin called, gesturing for everyone to follow him into what looked like a storage closet. His eyes widened. 

"Y/N, LOOK OUT!"

>End Flashback<

"If you hadn't grabbed me and shoved me into the room, I would have probably died. We were all-- understandably shaken. You and Sasha had taken the brunt of the initial attack and with the help of Martin's trusty corkscrew we were able to get the worms out of you quickly enough that they didn't cause that much damage. The room was safe. It was completely sealed, sound proof, climate controlled, almost a perfect safe haven. The perfect place for us to be trapped." 

"I don't know what this says about me, but I look back on those moments fondly. People are brought together by tragedy right? Jon, you said-- back then, that you didn't want to become a mystery. That that's why you grabbed the tape recorder. Do you think that's why I'm recording these? So I don't come a mystery too?"

She sighed.

"I don't know. Anyway, when we realized Tim was still out on lunch and we didn't have any signal, I started to panic. We had no eyes on Prentiss and we knew the worms were on the move but we still had no idea what was happening in the rest of the Archives, much less the Institute in general."

Y/N scoffed. There was the sound of a glass being placed gently on a table, the rustling of soft fabric. In the pause of her speech, the muffled sounds of cars passing in the street below kept silence from filling the space. 

"Hell, I was even worried about Elias. Not that I had anything to worry about, I'm sure. Anyway, when Tim came down, completely unharmed, I was relieved. The worms were still around though and Tim being as oblivious as he was, decided to mess around with the tape recorders. We tried to warn him. Here we found the disadvantage of being in a soundproof room. I screamed but it was no use. Then she showed up. Prentiss. She was there, behind him and he didn't see her. He didn't notice--" 

Her words caught for a moment. 

"Sasha did what I should have done. She stormed out of that room to save him and I was left behind with the two of you. Not that the two of you weren't great company, but Tim-- I had to do something. Even if it wasn't in my best interest. I'm sorry about that, by the way. I shouldn't have left you two alone. I was being selfish. And it didn't end very well for me anyway-- lets call it karma. This is the part that will be different from my initial report to you. What I told you back then wasn't the truth. I'm not sure why I lied to you. I know you were just concerned for me. I think maybe that's why. That part of me that didn't want to be a burden, that didn't understand what had just happened to me. It kept me quiet." 

"After we lost sight of Tim and Sasha, I couldn't think straight. So I did the one thing I thought I could do and I went through the door to follow them. I heard you and Martin call for me but I was too far gone. Problem was that the door was only there for a split-second."

>Flashback<

What? At first she wasn't sure what she was seeing, if she even was seeing what her brain was telling her she was seeing. She had just gone through the door, right? Spinning around to go back, her blood ran cold. Her throat started to close as panic pumped through her veins. 

No. No. What kind of sick joke was this? 

There was no door. 

Instead she was greeted by what she had seen when she had first arrived in that strange place. A long hallway stretched on, and on, and on until it turned off sharply. The walls were red. Were they red? They were lined with what looked to be mirrors and paintings. She spun around again. Maybe the door was this way? 

No. Both behind and in front of her was nothing but a long, spiraling hall. Chills raced up her arms and she wrapped them around herself. Like a shield. She had to get out, there had to be a way out. There had been a door in so there must have been a door out too. Sucking in a deep breath, she started walking, keeping her eyes focused forward. One foot in front of the other. Out of habit, Y/N glanced at the walls. What she had initially thought to be paintings turned out to be more like-- windows. They showed hallways like the ones she was in now. The only difference was that there was a figure. Shrouded in darkness, it looked to be human. Her brows furrowed and she stopped walking. She stepped closer. 

While it had a human form, there was something--off. Enough for her to notice that it bothered her but not enough for her to know what was exactly wrong with it. It was macabre to say the least. She stepped back and kept walking. 

How long had she been walking now? Her body didn't ache the way it normally would after walking for a long time. She had made the mistake of looking at the walls for too long and nearly fell from the dizziness. Everything here seemed to be distorted. The end of the hallway never seemed to get closer no matter how long her steps became. When had she started running? Was it when the figure in the window seemed to be getting closer, and closer, and--

She was panting now. Not from exhaustion, no, she wasn't tired. In order for her to be tired she would have to be moving but she wasn't moving. Why wasn't she moving? When had she stopped running? When had she gotten so close to the window? Who was that at the end of the hall?

There was someone at the end of the hall now. 

Her blood felt like ice. Y/N tried to force her body to move away but the more she struggled the closer the figure seemed to get. The closer it got, the harder it was to hold it in her focus. Everywhere she tried to search for a distinguishing feature just made her head hurt, the features only becoming clear when she wasn't directly looking at them. Blonde hair. A too wide, too wrong smile. Familiar. Sharp. So sharp. It's hands were sharp against her skin and her breath caught on itself. It was holding her arm. Was she bleeding? There was something warm soaking through her shirt. 

"Y---You---?"

It's smile widened. 

"W--What --are---are you?" Her voice was shaking. It seemed to laugh, the sound grating against her ear drums in a way she had never experienced before. 

"What a fascinating question, Y/N." It's voice sounded like sounds. Not like how voices and words are normally an amalgamation of sounds. This was---sounds that shouldn't be able to make recognizable words. "It's a fascinating question but I don't think it will be answered, not right now at least. What I am isn't important." It's hand trailed over the flesh of her arm and It circled her, like a predator around it's prey. She didn't move, afraid any sudden movement would cause It's sharp appendages to pierce her skin again. 

"Y--you're Michael-- right? You helped m--me and Sasha-- before." It hummed in response. 

"Michael is the name I am called. An easy way for you to categorize what I am. But yes-" It purred in her ear. "I did help you before, and I am helping you now." 

"Why?" The question hung in the air for a moment. It hesitated to answer, if It could be called hesitation to drag It's fingers silently down her back, tearing at skin and fabric alike. It took everything for her not to sob from the pain, fist clenched by her side. It seemed to be tracing a complex pattern but at some point the pain made whatever It was doing completely indiscernible. 

"I am interested in your future. You-- remind me of Michael. I want to see if you are as blind and naive as he was." 

"I--I don't understand. You said you're Michael." Her throat was tight. It came back around to her front and smiled thoughtfully. 

"No, I said that I am called Michael. Michael was a who, like you. I can never be a who, always a what." Y/N's shirt was soaked. Was she losing too much blood? The entity called Michael gestured to a wall, and where there had once been a window there was now a door. "I think you can go back now. But remember this---" It leaned down next to her ear. "--remember who saved you." 

It was gone. She was shaking. From the fear or the blood loss, it didn't matter. Y/N barely had the strength to push open the door and step through it. Elias pressed a button and she could hear the hiss of the CO2 system. Was she in the maintenance room? Her boss turned and his eyes widened with surprise. The shock on his face was short lived when he saw the state that she was in. All that blood. She looked down at herself. Her arm was still bleeding but the source of the pool on the floor must have been her back. It was real? She looked back up at Elias. Eliases? Why were there two of her boss? The floor was getting closer. 

Before Y/N hit the ground she was caught. Someone was talking to her. Cupping her face. She was so tired-- her eyes lids were heavy and against Elias's orders to stay awake, she was engulfed in a comfortable darkness.

>End Flashback<

"Michael saved me. He hurt me while he saved me, but he did save me in the end. Even if I wanted to forget it, the scars he left behind are never going to go away. He marked me."

The glass was empty.

"Elias got be to the medics in time and they were able to care for my wounds and get me the blood I needed. They kept me in quarantine while I was unconscious. I can't really blame them, they assumed the paths on my skin were the result of the worms burrowing their way inside. When they found nothing, they transferred me to a general hospital and Tim was finally able to see me again. He was relieved I was alive. Of course he was. And as much as he was have wanted to deny it, my state was a distraction from what had happened to him. When I woke up, he was holding my hand. His head resting on the hospital bed as he slept. I didn't wake him up. I think I just---cried? When he did wake up, neither of us wanted to talk about what happened. I didn't know what to tell him. The situation was already complicated enough without adding in a nonhuman entity kidnapping me to save me from Prentiss. He told me, reluctantly, what happened while I was MIA. Everyone was alright--"

Her breath hitched. 

"We --thought-- everyone was alright. You came to visit me, asked me what had happened. I told you a story. That I had been attacked and lost consciousness while I was looking for Tim. That I woke up eventually and found Elias. I'm sorry I lied to you. I don't think I had ever seen you so worried before. And as for Tim, well-- he wasn't keen on leaving me alone any time soon. Elias was--- nice-- enough to give us all substantial time off to process what had happened. When I was discharged from the hospital, Tim barely let me out of his sight."

"It wasn't until Martin came over that I found out about Gertrude's body."

>Click<


End file.
